Fans are gearing up for the introduction of the Fantastic Four to the MCU in the upcoming film, The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
The movie looks amazing, and it will be cool to finally get a really good quality story about these characters, and immerse them in the world that’s already established in the current Marvel landscape. With these heroes, we are also getting a new super villain that is arguably the biggest and baddest we’ve seen so far.
In the upcoming copy of Empire Magazine, set to hit shelves next week, the cover story focuses on the film’s villain, Galactus, who is being portrayed by actor Ralph Ineson, heralded by Julia Garner’s Silver Surfer. They will go up against Mr. Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), the Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), the Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach).
Galactus is described as “a humongous, 14-billion-year-old, planet-devouring cosmic vampire,” as director Matt Shakman puts it, and Marvel boss Kevin Feige has long, long wanted to tell. “The coming of Galactus is one of the greatest comic-book stories ever written,” he told the outlet.
For Ineson, getting into the headspace of Galactus was all about going big. “He’s a cosmic force. He’s a god, of sorts,” the actor – still beloved by fans of The Office for playing the detestable ‘Finchy’ – explains.
That meant driving through the tunnels of Mont Blanc, “just imagining that as his windpipe and his trachea,” he says. “I also went to a lot of tall buildings. We went to a wedding at the top of the Gherkin building in London, and I spent most of the afternoon just staring out, ruminating. I got in trouble with my wife — she was like, ‘You’ve got to say hello to the bride and groom at some point!’”
Still, is Galactus really a bad guy? The people of the Fantastic Four’s Earth might think so – though really, he’s just a big, planet-eating guy, simply doing what a big, planet-eating guy does. For Ineson, he’s played worse people. “I don’t think Galactus is evil,” he says. “But Finchy’s a proper cunt.”
We only have less than two months to wait before seeing his reign of destruction on the big screen, and I can’t wait! The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits theatres on July 25, 2025.
